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The day is being heralded around the world as a day the individual earth member (YOU) can make a change, a simple or complex change to your life to help save the planet. What will you do?

Since 2007 with our development of EcoStaging(R) training and Certified EcoProfessional™ education, CSP International has held Earth Day Events, reduced its carbon footprint, achieved carbon neutral certification, reduced waste, eliminated toxins and cleaned with toxic free products. We support the One Drop Foundation bringing clean water to under developed countries, NAR green services, we annually award the CSP International Green Bud award to graduates who have made a difference in their community with their own green acts, our electricity is Bullfrog Power (off grid) and personally I have certified my own garden as a wildlife habitat and have planted trees throughout Niagara to help clean air. April 23rd 2012 I pledged to increase our visibility, our actions and get all of our three thousand graduates+ staff to participate in A Billion Acts of Green.

It was 2007 when I had my consciousness raised to pay attention to the plight of the planet’s resources. I admit to feeling pretty overwhelmed and inadequate when it came to solving the problems. It all seemed to me there was too much to do and it didn’t really affect me – surely “some” authority was taking care of it. As the week went by I was haunted by the things I had heard; but how could I make a difference? EcoStaging® was born that night. I realized the people who I teach could be an army to spread the message of conservation of resources. I am in the real estate staging industry, we come in contact daily with agents and sellers who want a marketing edge for the property they are selling… what better marketing edge than saving money while helping the planet?

What I learned was it was all too much for many; people didn’t understand how it affected them directly, how it improved their health, how they saved money or how it was a marketing edge for business.

I am an early adopter; five years later I see the world catching up with increasing interest in wanting to understand the who, what, where and how.

The simple ways it affects any household:

Seventy percent of all energy consumption in North America is used by households. By paying attention to simple things you can reduce your energy bill and increase your savings. Things like changing regular light bulbs to CFL, they use less energy, give the same amount of light but they last seven to ten years so you save money two ways!

In contemplating content for this article I pondered a while on the power of one. One idea, one person, one small step, one action, one will and the effects those things can have on the world – ONE-DERFUL.

We hear many stories over the centuries of people who believed so passionately and spoke so strongly about an issue that they were able to raise the awareness of the social consciousness until everyone cared enough to help make strategic changes of significant proportion to help make the world a better place. Now the power of one is making a huge difference again. This time not only will it change the world but its goal is to save it.

For decades groups of concerned people have been scoffed at as “tree huggers” or activists are finally having their day.

People in general are waking up and noticing that the latest environmental movement starts with them; they are taking notice and more importantly starting to care enough to do something to help, however small the action may be.

I am of course talking about the power of the GREEN movement. There is a growing belief by many that we as an individual power of one can make changes to our day to day environment at home, at work and at play which will contribute significantly to this universal quest of saving the planet and its resources to ensure the sustainability of the earth for generations to follow. Pretty powerful! I believe the power of Al Gore movie “An Inconvenient Truth” can really help raise the social consciousness.

Have you noticed all of sudden how “Green” is in? Green everything, save the planet, save energy, save money, save your health, green your pet—just everything. Al Gore’s movie has really started something. Well, contrary to what “Kermit the Frog” said—apparently, it IS easier than you think, to be green.

Hippies and flower children of earlier times are today’s aging baby boomers but it must make them proud to finally see the “greening” awareness rise so much in peoples’ consciousness. While it maybe easier today to make small changes to your lifestyle and help the environment, there are some with a concern that there is so much publicity now that people will tune out the message, just like white noise, and eventually become desensitized to the real issues.

Green encompasses everything from turning lights off to recycling and reducing your carbon footprint. When a business claims to have green credentials, how do you know they are actually true and/or worthwhile? Retailers are spending millions promoting their green credentials; but is it a genuine effort to become green, or a marketing ploy to attract savvy consumers like you? Can profit driven companies actually be beneficial to the planet? Or at the very least, less harmful. Truly, it is very difficult to get it completely right and there are no easy answers to these complex questions.

With all the talk about green energy, green flooring (Bamboo) and even green detergent it’s easy for a lay person to get confused and miss the point. For example most detergents aren’t too bad for the environment and are definitely much better than they used to be. However, everyone has a “new clean green label.” Turning your washing machine thermostat down to 30 degrees Celsius will have a much bigger impact than changing your detergent. Bamboo flooring is definitely more sustainable than hardwood but the energy used to transport it from the place of origin to North America, cancels any “green” effect. It is complicated for sure. Continue reading this post

Everyone is talking about it. Some people are doing something about it and many people are thinking what can I do – I am only one person. I recently saw the passage below on a website for Parkinson’s disease and was moved to think how one person can really make a difference to anything. I thought I would share it with you.

“The Difference of One is really the difference in everything. In every struggle, every battle, every search and every dream there comes a moment when the outcome is decided. There are countless things that may have occurred leading up to that point, that moment, but something trips the forces in play and the scale tips to one way or another. That something is The Difference of One.”

Every person knows or has felt the difference that just one thing can make and has made in her/his life. One goal made, one appointment missed, one date made, one job completed, one wrong turn, one dream realized, one piece of homework lost, one hug, one lie, one apology, one smile.” (www.thedifferenceofone.org)

Everything we are, everything we do or want to do begins with one small step. I am forever motivated by remembering when President Kennedy said, “Within ten years we will put a man on the moon and safely return him to Earth.” They didn’t even have a rocket ship plan at that time. They had a goal and they achieved it one step at a time.

So if the goal is to save the planet for our grandchildren, great grandchildren and all the generations to come, we all need to do our part – one small step at a time, but do we must. I have been inspired by Al Gore’s movie “Inconvenient Truth.” If you have not seen it yet, consider doing so. Sit down with your pre-teens and older children and start thinking about the small steps your family can take. If we each do a little it will eventually mean a lot.

In the process of getting a property ready for sale, CSP™ consultants remark frequently that the work they did in preparation for that house sale was the catalyst for that home seller to change the way they lived. Comments reverberate around the continent – “I didn’t know how much stuff I had accumulated.” “I am amazed at how great the house looks with less ‘stuff’ in it,” or “I am inspired to live like this all the time; less is definitely more.”

In the last few years, the CSP™ organization introduced eco-friendly products which the graduates of their program may choose to use in the work they do. This is another small step towards a cleaner planet. This research motivated me to find some ideas that you can implement at home for little to no cost.

Visit the website of just about any builder or new home community and you will see a list of the environmentally friendly attributes of the homes. Going green, making sustainable choices, reducing our carbon footprint and environmental impact – these aren’t just buzz words – they are extremely important to today’s consumers, to our communities, and our planet. Don’t let the new home builders get all the credit for their eco-friendly policies. It doesn’t matter how many ENERGY STAR® appliances they put in a home, it will almost always be better for the environment to buy an existing home than to build a new one.

Environmentally friendly features are likely to save home owners money as well, as they are often related to energy savings. The financial benefit is especially great when the green elements are already in the home – there are no up front costs such as replacing existing appliances or light bulbs, or installing new systems such as solar panels.

Appeal to conscious home shoppers by highlighting the green aspects of your listings. Be on the lookout for items such as these that may be already present or easily and inexpensively added:

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